Motivating students to acquire mainframe skills

There has been a perception in both industry and in academia that mainframe skills are obsolete. As a result, there has been a decline in curricula addressing these skills. However, recent evidence shows that many organizations are still actively supporting mainframe technologies and report a need for students graduating in information technology to be trained in those skills, especially as much of their current mainframe workforce moves toward retirement. This paper examines the question of what motivates students to acquire mainframe skills. To do so, this research is investigates IBM's Master the Mainframe contest, a competition that attempts to engender enthusiasm for acquiring mainframe skills and ensure an adequate supply of such skills to organizations relying on them.

[1]  Sue Hewitt,et al.  Defusing the demographic time‐bomb , 2008 .

[2]  E. Deci,et al.  “Facilitating optimal motivation and psychological well-being across life’s domains”: Correction to Deci and Ryan (2008). , 2008 .

[3]  Klaus Krippendorff,et al.  Content Analysis: An Introduction to Its Methodology , 1980 .

[4]  I. Ajzen The theory of planned behavior , 1991 .

[5]  M. Lepper Motivational Considerations in the Study of Instruction , 1988 .

[6]  Matthew Fleming,et al.  Managing the development of a mainframe-based inquiry system for the Internet , 2002, Ind. Manag. Data Syst..

[7]  Ronald J. Kizior,et al.  The Case for Continued Cobol Education , 2000, IEEE Softw..

[8]  Fred D. Davis Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and User Acceptance of Information Technology , 1989, MIS Q..

[9]  Wonseok Oh,et al.  The strategic value of IT insourcing: An IT-enabled business process perspective , 2010, J. Strateg. Inf. Syst..

[10]  R. Weber Basic Content Analysis , 1986 .

[11]  Kevin P. Gallagher,et al.  Changing IT skills: The Impact of Sourcing Strategies on In-House Capability Requirements , 2007, J. Electron. Commer. Organ..

[12]  R. Ryan,et al.  Psychological needs and the facilitation of integrative processes. , 1995, Journal of personality.

[13]  R. Weber Basic content analysis, 2nd ed. , 1990 .

[14]  Xiang Fang,et al.  Perception Gaps about Skills Requirement for Entry-Level IS Professionals between Recruiters and Students: An Exploratory Study , 2008, Inf. Resour. Manag. J..

[15]  Andrew J. McAllister,et al.  The Case for Teaching Legacy Systems Modernization , 2011, 2011 Eighth International Conference on Information Technology: New Generations.

[16]  E. Deci,et al.  Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. , 2000, The American psychologist.

[17]  Steven B. Rothman,et al.  The Future IS Organization in a Flat World , 2007, Inf. Syst. Manag..

[18]  Ping Zhang,et al.  The Effects of Extrinsic Motivations and Satisfaction in Open Source Software Development , 2010, J. Assoc. Inf. Syst..

[19]  Yasmeen Lukmani MOTIVATION TO LEARN AND LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY , 1972 .

[20]  Lyman W. Porter,et al.  Managerial attitudes and performance , 1968 .

[21]  Mark E. McMurtrey,et al.  Mapping the MIS Curriculum Based on Critical Skills of New Graduates: An Empirical Examination of IT Professionals , 2008, J. Inf. Syst. Educ..

[22]  Sang M. Lee,et al.  IT managers' requisite skills , 2006, Commun. ACM.